My Final Take

Yes, yes. I know everyone is tired of hearing about RWA 2011. But this was kind of a big deal for me, so I thought I could get away with writing one more post about it.   I don’t get out much.

I wanted to share some of my personal takeaways from the conference. These are things I felt were most important for myself as a writer and, indeed, as a human being. So here they are, in no particular order.

  • I need to drink more water than I think I need to drink.
  • Romance might not kill, but Spanx sure can.
  • If there is such a thing as a romance geek, it is I. (I am she?) I just about fainted when Malle Vallick actually looked at my blog and pronounced it “not bad.” And when I met the rest of the Harlequin digital team, I wanted to ask for their autographs (I didn’t, but I wanted to). Don’t even get me started on how excited I was about meeting authors at the book signings. I met Jenny Crusie! And Anne Stuart! Ahhh!
  • I am a nerd. I loved the workshops. I enjoyed the parties, especially the smaller ones. I am uncomfortable wearing a dress. That’s just who I am.  And you have to be yourself, even when you’re at a conference with a bunch of strangers.
  • Speaking of wearing dresses, it is not a good idea to slide across the seat of a cab, exiting with both feet sticking out the door, in the center of Times Square, while one is wearing a dress. Just saying. Grace and a show.
  • With just a few exceptions, everyone is shorter than you think they’re going to be.
  • Pretty much everyone else is nervous too.
  • It is both delightful and nervewracking to meet people in person whom you’ve only met over the Internet. Now I have to obsess over whether or not they still like me. It’s so much easier to be liked when you’ve never really met.
  • You can’t let the fact that you are afraid – no TERRIFIED – stop you from doing things you really want to do. You have to do them anyway because those things will be the most worthwhile.
  • Romance authors with some degree of fame can be the most generous people in the world.  They can also be cool or bitchy. In other words, they’re human. And they tend to look for a convenient escape route when you go all “fan girl” on them.  How do I know? Um..no reason..
  • The romance genre is vital and viable.  Readers love it.  Writers love it.  People are devoted to it.  I’m not alone in my love for it.
  • I am an author. I write romance novels. And being an author who loves and writes romance novels is a pretty great thing.

And I promise – that’s my last post about RWA 2011.  For now.

 

Comments

  1. Just read through all your RWA blog posts – nice recap!

  2. Ah Betsy. You’re my hero. Well, all except for the getting out of the cab part. Love the post.

    • Betsy Horvath says

      @Marcelle Dubé: Thanks, Marcelle! I shudder to think what my exit from the cab looked like from the outside. Hopefully everyone was gazing in awe at the buildings and ignoring me. LOLOLOL It was fun once I got to the conference, but BOY did I panic in the days leading up to it. It was worth it, though. 😀

  3. I’ve loved your RWA posts. They’ve been great for those of us who were stuck in a damp, cold UK and dreaming of Times Square.

    I’m so with you on the whole dress wearing business. If, like me, you hardly ever wear one, it’s almost impossible to exit a cab with your, um, dignity in one piece. 🙂

    Thanks for sharing, and glad you had such a great time!

    • Betsy Horvath says

      @Shirley Wells:Thanks, Shirley! And I NEVER wear dresses, so between that and the Spanx it was just ugly. LOL The next time I go, I’ll know better – best to be comfortable, if not as stylish! 😀

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